In Hungary, Viktor Orban’s desire to expel Ukrainian refugees provokes indignation among NGOs and the opposition

The Hungarian Prime Minister has issued a decree that deprives Ukrainians in his country who come from a region where there is no fighting of their right to housing.

As Russian missiles rained down across Ukraine on Monday, August 26, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the most Russophile of European leaders, is encouraging Ukrainian refugees to return home. Of the 46,000 refugees registered in Hungary, the majority work and can rent an apartment. But a few thousand vulnerable people, including single women with children, were housed for free by the state. However, these refugees lose their right to housing if they come from a region of Ukraine where there is no fighting, according to a decree signed by Viktor Orban and which came into force on August 21. According to the government, half of Ukraine’s territory is not affected by the war, evictions have already begun and it is the poorest who find themselves without a roof over their heads.

Sonia Lakatos fled to Hungary when the Ukrainian army came looking for her husband at the beginning of the war. Today, the young woman, who is of Roma origin, is no longer entitled to social housing, she comes from a region of Ukraine considered safe by the Orban government. But Sonia cannot return home, her apartment has been vandalized. “They took everything, the furniture, the doors and the windows, to sell them, she explains. “There, in my home, people are starving.”

At least 4,000 refugees are losing their right to housing. Sonia was evicted from her shelter in the provinces. Along with about ten other families, she was temporarily rehoused by the Helsinki Committee. Andras Lederer works for this NGO and is outraged by what is happening: “How can we expel such vulnerable people! Who, moreover, have refugee status, granted by the Hungarian government!”

Ukrainian refugees in Budapest are more fortunate. They will be relocated by the city, which is run by the opposition. “It’s not a money issue, it’s a humanitarian issue, emphasizes Judit Szentirmai, deputy mayor. We can’t throw people out!” But in the provinces, several families found themselves on the streets, with no one to help them. These refugees took the train to return to Ukraine.